Artist Anjaneyulu G brings an exhibition that gives life to everyday objects, their stories and the memories they preserve

“Oh the poignancy of instruments that once turned, twisted and screamed but are now deaf, dumb, lame and mute. There is something fresh about decay. It’s happening right now. Just like about memories. We are making them up right now. Should we collate, catalogue and document them? Maybe yes, we should,” says artist Anjaneyulu G. 

Aptly titled ‘Museum of Memories’, his works are on display at the exhibition. The use of objects/still life is fundamental to Anjaneyulu’s oeuvre. Hailing from a small village in the Nalgonda district of Telangana, his artistic practice takes shape through his countless experiences as a young boy growing up in a rural setting.

Focusing on objects of everyday use, commonly found in small towns and villages, the artist uses hyper-realism to capture the essence of the mundane and give them iconic status. The artist isolates the objects in his works that are often placed against a flat wall with a sharp shadow that adjoins it, adding depth to his paintings.

“Tape recorders and what, decanters? Tea shops and blaring music? Vinyls and C90s? Odds and ends, bric-a-brac. Onion baskets and tea kettles, what melodies forever frozen in silent magnetic alignment! Once screaming and now silent. The scrap that we have strewn along the highways of memory is poignant, irrevocable and of incredible variety,” he adds. 

In this show, captured in great detail and with precision are the simple objects described above which are perceived independently of their surroundings. The artist creates a sense of timelessness around the objects that are associated with memories that tie him to his roots. 

Through an exploration of Anjaneyulu’s personal memories and intellect, the show attempts to dive deep into the myriad stories that are told by each of his objects, creating an archive of stories and diverse experiences. The artist’s technique places the objects in this collection in isolation, they belong to not only to the artist but also to the viewer. This alienation allows the viewer to experience the objects in their own right, associating their own memories with each. 

While a tea kettle takes the artist back to his youth, the lantern identifies with the reminiscence of an adolescence past. Anjaneyulu guides us, through his nostalgia, to our own memories, lost in the layers of time, lost in our archive, in our own Museum of Memories. 

The exhibition is on display at Art Alive Gallery till 20 February